Effective September 16, 2013, Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Revenue Ruling 2013-17 will allow same-sex couples to be treated as “married” for all federal tax purposes including federal tax filing status, claiming personal and dependency exemptions, and employee benefits provided they are able to provide proof of legal marriage in one of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, a U.S. Territory, or a foreign country that legally recognizes same-sex marriages.

 

Starting September 16, 2013, legally married same sex couples will be able to do the following:

• Enroll their spouse into RCUH’s Health Plans on a pre-tax payroll deduction basis.
  • Employees who marry a same-sex spouse on or after September 16, 2013 will be given thirty (30) days from date of marriage to enroll their spouse.
  • Employees who were married to a same-sex spouse prior to September 16, 2013 will be given thirty (30) days (i.e. October 16, 2013) from September 16, 2013 to enroll their spouse.
• File Federal Tax returns under a “married” status.

 

How do I make these changes?

 

RCUH Medical and Dental Plans:

• Fill out RCUH Group Benefits Enrollment/Change Application Form
• Provide Proof of Marriage Certificate (if in a foreign language, it must be translated to English language)
• Scan/Email documents to RCUH Benefits at [email protected] 

W-4 Federal Tax Withholding:

• Log into Employee Self Service, go to Payroll and Compensation
• Change marital status to “married” under W-4 Tax Information

 

RCUH will provide subsequent updates as more details on the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) become available. For specific information, employees should consult with their personal tax attorney. Should you have any questions, please email RCUH benefits at [email protected]. 

Welcome to this year’s RCUH United Way Campaign!  During these tough economic times, we humbly ask for your continued support.  As one of the largest non-profit organizations in Hawaii, the Aloha United Way supports a network of member agencies to meet a broad range of health and human service needs.

                                                                                                         

The RCUH Statewide United Way campaign allows our employees to donate to the various island wide United Way programs:

·         Aloha United Way (Oahu)

·         Hawaii Island United Way

·         Maui United Way

·         Kauai United Way

 

HOW TO CONTRIBUTE:  To contribute to the various Statewide United Way programs, complete the 2013 RCUH Employee Pledge Form and return the original form to RCUH Human Resources at 1601 East West Road, Burns Hall, 4^th Floor, Honolulu, HI 96848. 

Deadline: Friday, October 4, 2013.

Contribute via Payroll Deduction:  RCUH employees have the option to contribute to the various Statewide United Way Campaigns via payroll deduction.  Your payroll deduction will be collectively sent to the United Way Campaign specified on your pledge form.  Payroll deduction period is from December 16, 2013 – December 15, 2014.

 

Optional Donor Choice Forms are available for you to contribute to a designated agency.  See the individual island campaign websites for more information and to obtain the Donor Choice Form.

 

For more information about the individual island campaigns, click on the links below to visit their website or call:

Aloha United Way (808-536-1951)

Maui United Way (808-244-8787)

Kauai United Way (808-245-2043)

Hawaii Island United Way (808-935-6393)

Or contact Evelyn Moss at (808) 956-6965 with any questions.

RCUH PA/PAF Training in Hilo on Friday, September 13, has been cancelled.

 

RCUH PA/PAF Training on Oahu on Thursday, September 12, will be located in John A. Burns Hall Room 4012.

 

RCUH will be conducting an EEO and Sexual Harassment Prevention Training for Employees and Supervisors in Hilo.  RCUH requires EEO and Sexual Harassment Prevention Training for all employees every 2 years.

 

 

 

The purpose of this training is to provide RCUH employees and supervisors with an understanding of the RCUH EEO & Sexual Harassment Policy and the RCUH EEO Complaint/Investigation Process.  These policies apply to all employees and will provide you with a better understanding of what discrimination/sexual harassment is in the work place, how to prevent discrimination/sexual harassment from happening, and what RCUH’s policy is on discrimination/sexual harassment.  Knowing how to prevent occurrences of sexual harassment and discriminatory behavior is critical in today’s world.

 

 

 

Policies:

 

3.110 RCUH Equal Employment Opportunity Policy

 

3.120 RCUH Sexual Harassment

 

 

 

TRAINING SESSION DATE:

 

*Supervisors must attend session for employees.  Employees will be dismissed and Supervisor session will begin after a 5 minute break.

 

 

 

DATE:               Friday, September 27, 2013

 

TIME:               9:00am – 11:00am (employees, supervisors)

 

                         11:00am – 12:00pm (continue with supervisors only*)

 

LOCATION:     UH Hilo Campus Center Room 301

 

 

 

To sign up for training, click on RCUH Training Enrollment located on the RCUH home web page.  If you are a current employee, log on to Employee Self Service to select training.  Supervisors must sign up for both sessions.

 

 

 

Meetings are accessible for individuals with disabilities.  For more information or to request an accommodation due to your disability, contact (808) 956-6965 or email [email protected] at least one week prior to the session.

 

Significant parts of the federal health care reform law known as the Affordable Care Act (ACA) take effect on January 1, 2014. The ACA creates a new way for individuals to buy health insurance via the Health Insurance Marketplace, referred to in Hawaii as the “Hawaii Health Connector”.

 

This new option of purchasing health insurance does not change RCUH’s policy of providing health insurance to Regular status employees who are 50% FTE or greater (and their eligible dependents). Instead, the Hawaii Health Connector gives individuals the option to enroll in health insurance through its website, as opposed to obtaining coverage through an employer or purchasing insurance directly through a health insurer.  This means that RCUH employees who are not currently eligible to enroll in RCUH’s health plans – perhaps because they are not Regular status employees or because they are Regular status employees who missed open enrollment – may choose to enroll for health insurance directly through the Hawaii Health Connector.

 

All RCUH employees will be receiving a notice entitled, “New Health Insurance Marketplace Coverage Options and Your Health Coverage” very shortly. This notice will provide you with the following information: 

•  Information and Additional Resources on the Health Insurance Marketplace (Hawaii Health Connector)

o      Open Enrollment for health insurance coverage through the Marketplace begins in October 2013 for coverage starting as early as January 1, 2014.

•  Information about health coverage currently offered by RCUH

o      Please review Policy 3.520 RCUH Health Plans for detailed information on eligibility and coverage.

 

 If you have any questions, please email RCUH Benefits at [email protected].

 

Would you know what to do in a cardiac, breathing or first aid emergency? Our CPR/AED/ First Aid course teaches you the skills needed to save a life.

 

Course length: 6.5 hours

 

2 years certification

 

First Aid: Learn how to respond to common first aid emergencies, including burns; cuts; head, neck and back injuries and more.

 

CPR/AED: Learn how to respond to cardiac and breathing emergencies in Adults, including the use of automated external defibrillators (AED).

 

Training Schedule

Hilo
Friday, October 4, 2013
8:00am – 3:00pm
891 Ululani Street
RSVP 09/27/13

Maui
TBD

Oahu
TBD

Seating is limited.  To sign up for training, click on RCUH Training Enrollment located on the RCUH home web page.

 

Meetings are accessible for individuals with disabilities. For more information or to request an accommodation due to your disability, email [email protected] at least one week prior to the meeting

In order to minimize searching for the RCUH timesheets each pay period, we will have the current RCUH timesheet available in the Current News section of the RCUH website on the first working day of each pay period.

                                                

Click here for the September 1-15, 2013 Timesheet

PAYROLL Deadline is September 16, 2013, noon

Payday for this timesheet is September 20, 2013

Next Announcement: September 16 (September 15-30)

RCUH PA/PAF Training on Maui on Friday, September 6, has been cancelled.

 

TO:                 All Principal Investigators

 

 

 

FROM:           Nelson Sakamoto

 

                   Director of Human Resources

 

 

 

SUBJECT:    RCUH Workers’ Compensation – Change in Third Party Administrator

 

 

 

 

 

Effective September 1, 2013, the RCUH will be changing our Workers’ Compensation Third Party Administrator from Brandvold Ku, Inc. to First Insurance Company of Hawaii (FICOH)’s First Risk Management Services (FiRMS Claims Service). On Thursday, August 29, 2013, RCUH employees with open workers’ compensation claims will be notified by FiRMS Claims Services via email with updated contact information. We are expecting this to be a seamless process as we transition between third party administrators.

 

 

 

As a reminder, please remind your employees to report all work-related injuries immediately to their supervisors. Employees should refer to Policy 3.580 RCUH Workers’ Compensation and the 

Guidelines to Employees

 memo for more information on how their workers’ compensation claim will be processed and administered.

 

 

 

Please email me at [email protected] if you have any questions.

 

 

 

 

Volume 16, Issue 7

 

August 22, 2013

 

 

 

REMINDER: TRAVEL FOR NONIMMIGRANT EMPLOYEES  

 

Employees on J-1, H-1B, TN, E-3, or O-1 visas sponsored by the RCUH must notify Cindy Adams at (808) 956-8344 or [email protected] if you intend to travel outside the U.S.  We ask that you provide us at least a two (2) week notice prior to travel so that we may ensure that you have the proper documentation to return to the U.S.

 

 

 

Nonimmigrant employees who have a pending “change of status” petition (i.e., change from F-1 to H-1B, etc.) with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) must remain in the U.S. until a determination on the petition is rendered.  Whenever an individual with a pending “change of status” petition departs the U.S., USCIS will cancel the petition since they consider the beneficiary to have “abandoned” the request.

 

 

 

Please contact Cindy Adams at [email protected] or (808) 956-8344 if you have any questions.

 

 

 

STUDENT EMPLOYMENT

 

All RCUH Student Assistant employees are responsible for submitting a Student Verification each Semester in order to qualify for continued student employment.  For all University of Hawaii students (eg: UH Manoa, UH Hilo, Honolulu Community College, Maui College, etc.), verification is not required, as RCUH has the ability to verify student status electronically through a UH database.  However, verification is still needed for UH Outreach College and non-UH Schools (i.e. High School, Chaminade, HPU, etc).

 

 

 

The following are acceptable forms of student verification:

 

a) Student registration or receipt

 

b) Letter of student registration from the registrar or counselor

 

c) Validate student I.D. card

 

d) Any other form of verification deemed acceptable by the Director of Human Resources

 

 

 

Continuation of student employment:

 

Project/Student must submit Student Verification for the Fall 2013 semester by Tuesday, September 3, 2013.  Failure to submit student verification by the indicated deadline will result in termination of student employment.

 

 

 

Please contact Sharon Vong at [email protected] or (808) 956-7307 if you have any questions.

 

 

 

IMPORTANT DATES TO REMEMBER (SEPTEMBER 2013)

 

 

9/2/13	Holiday – Labor Day
9/3/13	Payroll Deadline Noon
9/5/13 – 9/9/13	HR AMP Web Time Preview #1
9/6/13	Pay Day
9/9/13	PAF Deadline
9/10/13	HR AMP Deadline
9/10/13 – 9/11/13	HR AMP Web Time Preview #2
9/11/13 – 9/18/13	ESS Blackout Period
9/12/13 – 9/16/13	HR AMP Web Time Reporting Period
9/16/13	Payroll Deadline Noon
9/20/13	Pay Day
9/20/13 – 9/24/13	HR AMP Web Time Preview #1
9/24/13	PAF Deadline
9/25/13	HR AMP Deadline
9/25/13 – 9/26/13	HR AMP Web Time Preview #2
9/26/13 – 10/3/13	ESS Blackout Period
9/27/13 – 10/1/13	HR AMP Web Time Reporting

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

IMPORTANT DATES TO REMEMBER (OCTOBER 2013)

 

 

10/1/13	Payroll Deadline Noon
10/7/13	Pay Day
10/7/13 – 10/9/13	HR AMP Web Time Preview #1
10/9/13	PAF Deadline
10/10/13	HR AMP Deadline
10/10/13 – 10/13/13	HR AMP Web Time Preview #2
10/11/13 – 10/18/13	ESS Blackout Period
10/14/13 – 10/16/13	HR AMP Web Time Reporting Period
10/16/13	Payroll Deadline Noon
10/22/13	Pay Day
10/23/13 – 10/27/13	HR AMP Web Time Preview #1
10/25/13	PAF Deadline
10/28/13	HR AMP Deadline
10/28/13 – 10/29/13	HR AMP Web Time Preview #2
10/29/13 – 11/5/13	ESS Blackout Period
10/30/13 – 11/1/13	HR AMP Web Time Reporting Period

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

TIMESHEETS FOR THE MONTH OF AUGUST-SEPTEMBER

 

September 1-15, 2013

 

September 16-30, 2013

 

October 1-15, 2013

 

October 16-31, 2013

 

 

 

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR’S CORNER:

 

 

 

HAWAII LABOR LAWS POSTERS

 

All Hawaii employers are to ensure they have all legal employment law posters on their company’s bulletin board.  The State of Hawaii Department of Labor and Industrial Relations (CLIR) have provided an option of posting an all-inclusive poster or posters of each law.  To obtain these posters for free, the DLIR has provided two URLs for you to download these posters: http://hawaii.gov/labor/official-labor-law-poster.

 

 

 

Poster(s) covers the following laws:

 

Disability Compensation Law

 

Laws Prohibiting Employment Discrimination

 

Military Leave

 

Occupational Safety & Health Laws

 

Required Notice to Dislocated Workers/Plant Closings

 

Unemployment Insurance Law

 

Wage & Hour Laws

 

Whistleblower Protection Law

 

 

 

For Federal Labor Laws you may obtain the applicable poster at the following URL: http://www.dol.gov/oasam/boc/osdbu/sbrefa/poster/matrix.htm.

 

 

 

Please ensure you have these Federal and State labor law posters displayed in an appropriate location.

 

 

 

EEO/AA POLICY

 

RCUH IS AN EQUAL EMPLOYMENT opportunity/affirmative action employer.  It is the policy of RCUH to afford equal employment opportunity to all individuals without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, arrest and court record, handicap, marital status, or status as a disabled veteran or veteran of the Vietnam era.  RCUH’s Affirmation Action Plan describes the programs/procedures developed to ensure employment opportunities for women, minorities, handicapped, disabled, and Vietnam era veterans.  The Plan is available for inspection at the RCUH Human Resources Department.